Chapter 7 Chapter Six

In the early morning of November 26, 1940, Thomas Levine, who was quiet and introverted, came out of the Noir Hotel, returned to the old district of Marseilles, and returned to the third-floor apartment of the house on the Rue des Rosechevaliers.Before he came back he drank a lot with Josephine Barker and Colonel Debra and talked a lot about what he was going to do. He stood in front of Santa's messy bed, and for a few seconds he wished he could beat the sleeping woman, but he decided to take a hot bath first.Later, his singing woke up Santa, and his beautiful girlfriend finally found him in the bathtub.While Santa was rubbing his back, he gave her a rough account of his salvation.Of course, he has some reservations, because he has to be a little wary of her now.He ended by saying, "They let me go because they needed me. They wanted me to do something for them. And to do it I need you. Just thinking about it, I think it's okay." God reconciles with you." Upon hearing this, Santa's sad eyes flashed with joy: "Will you forgive me?"

"It's not a question of whether it will, but I have to spare you. Because I need you now." "No matter what, as long as you spare me." She said and kissed Thomas: "I am willing to do anything for you. What do you want? Say it." "A few bars of gold." "Strip... strip... how many pieces of gold? How much?" "Well, about five to ten million francs worth of gold." "Real gold bars?" "Of course it's filled with lead." "okay then." "You bastard." Thomas gritted his teeth and scolded: "You goblin, it's all because of you and me that I fell into this vortex again. Don't rub so hard." But she rubbed harder and harder, and she was still happy He cried out: "Oh, I'm so happy, they didn't kill you. My baby."

"Stop rubbing!" she laughed, tickling her as she laughed. "Stop it, don't stop me from hitting me!" "Hit it! Hit it!" Thomas grabbed Santa, and she cried out in pain.Water splashed Lao Gao.He dragged Santa with all his clothes into the tub and plunged into the hot, soapy water.Santa yelled and yelled and laughed, spat out the water she had soaked in her mouth, and finally she lay silent in Thomas' arms. The brief silence left Thomas room to think.He thought of poor Lazarus Alcobar, of poor Walter Lindner and his wife, of the ship sunk in the middle of the ocean and of its passengers, of the sailors who did not survive, I thought of the poor soldiers who huddled up in the trenches in the cold day and night.In short he thought of all the poor souls, how short their lives were, how hard their days were, and how miserable their end was.There is so little happiness in the world!

On Wednesday, December 4, 1940, three gentlemen had a vegetarian lunch in the private room of the Bristol Hotel in Carneyby Avenue.Among them was an experienced cook who was serving à la carte dishes while instructing the chefs in the restaurant kitchen.The names of these three were Jacques Bergi, Paul de Lessepton and Pierre Hunébert.Paul de Lessepton was a thin, sullen man of few words.Thirty-seven years old.Jacques Bergi was older, ruddy, fatter, and very richly dressed.The gestures and eyes are a bit artificial, the voice is high when talking, and the steps are small when walking.He was wearing a dark blue coat with a dark red velvet vest, and he smelled strongly of perfume.That Pierre Hunébert was, of course, Thomas Levine.He now had in his pocket a new passport which the French intelligence service had procured for him.The passport holder's name is Pierre Hunnebert...

Bergi and de Lessepton met Yu Nebel for the first time, and Bergi immediately fell in love with this romantic young man.His tender, girlish eyes were always on Mr. Nabel's side.Thomas had invited the two to lunch after Thomas had declared to Belgi's lawyers as a business partner. "We'd better have a nice meal and talk while we eat," Thomas first suggested. "Excellent, Monsieur Hunébert. But don't come with meat dishes," replied Bergi in a shrill voice. "Don't you eat meat?" "Not at all. I don't smoke or drink alcohol." Thomas said in his heart that he probably has nothing to do with women!You are so clean and spotless, you only know how to work for the Gestapo, you hypocrite...Thomas figured in his heart that this fat guy was easy to deal with, so he and Lasepton should be more careful.Lesepton suddenly asked straight to the point: "What's your job, sir?"

"Gentlemen, Marseille is a small town. Everyone knows that you came here from Paris to negotiate business." At this moment, an elderly waiter served the dinner, and Thomas stopped talking and did not continue.As soon as the fat lawyer glanced at the plate, he exclaimed: "Oh, didn't I make it clear just now, no meat dishes!" Lessepton interrupted him, and turned to Thomas: "Unebel Sir, people here say what business do we do?" "Uh, um. Foreign exchange, gold. People say you are interested in this stuff." Lessepton and Belgie glanced at each other.There was a silence in the private room.At last, Lessepton said coldly: "Is that what other people say?"

"Yes, that's what they say. Well, Mr. Bergi, would you like some soy sauce?" "Good friend." The lawyer replied, staring blankly at Thomas, "I was really touched. I thought it was meat, but it turned out not to be. It's delicious. Uh, what is this?" Lasepton wrinkled He frowned and said: "Mr. Hunnebel, you talked about foreign exchange and gold. What if we are really interested in this?" Thomas said to Bergi: "This is a mushroom, how is it? It's a good workmanship, isn't it?" Lysupton asked in a drawn out voice, "Do you have gold?"

"Wow." "Where did it come from?" "Where did it come from?" Thomas replied with a little pride, "I don't want to ask whose name you bought this thing for." Lasepton stared at Thomas with shark eyes and said, "You got it How many shots are there?" "It depends on how much you want?" "I think." Lessepton said, "You don't have that much." Suddenly the fat lawyer laughed and said, "Let me tell you, we want to buy 200 million!" My God!What a deal, Thomas thought! Oh my God!The old waiter standing at the door of the private room and eavesdropping was also thinking, what a big deal!He clicked his tongue incessantly as he tiptoed into the small bar of the hotel, where no one was drinking at that time.Behind the counter sat a burly man with bristly brush hair. "Hello, Bastian." The old waiter called him.The man raised his head, his eyes were small, and his palms were large.He asked: "What are they talking about?" The old waiter gave him a report. "Oh! Two hundred million! My God!" The man named Bastian Fabre stuffed a banknote into the hand of the old waiter and said: "Listen again. Write it all down, I will Be back in a moment."

"All right, Bastian," said the old waiter, glancing at the denomination of the bill. Bastian walked out of the bar quickly, pulled out a bicycle from the parking room, jumped on the bicycle, and drove along the Old Port towards the Bergs Wharf.There are two of the most famous cafes in the city, one is called Sintra, the other is called Old Mariner.The two cafés are home to all sorts of black market trades.The furnishings in Sintra are newer, and most of the wealthy Greek traders, Turks, Dutch and Egyptians come here.Bastian came to the Old Sailor's Cafe, which was furnished in a more old-fashioned way.The walls of the cafe are clad in dark wood, and some huge mirrors reflect the gray light from the street outside into the house.The people who come here for coffee are all locals.It's midday and most people are drinking pastis, an aperitif liqueur.The Old Sailor's Café was full of liquor dealers, paper forgers, smugglers, black marketeers and exiles.Bastian knew many of them.As soon as he entered, he kept saying hello to his acquaintances, and many people also took the initiative to say hello to him.There is a side door at the corner of the main hall of the restaurant, and a sign is hung next to the door handle, which says private room.Bastian knocked four long, two short knocks on the door.The door opened and Bastian walked in.The house was filled with choking smoke.Fifteen men and one woman sat around a long table.Those men were recognizable at a glance as Lu Han, and some of them had beards all over their faces.Several of them had flat nose bridges and had large and small scars on their faces.Among them were Africans, Armenians and Corsicans.

At the head of the table was the only woman among them.She wore a red hat with navy-blue curls hanging beneath it.She was wearing trousers and a raw leather jacket.An outsider could tell at a glance that Santa Tessier was the leader of this gang of thieves.She is a lonely she-wolf and a ruthless queen.As soon as she saw Bastian, she reprimanded him immediately: "Why did you come at this time?" Bastian stared at her blankly, his eyes seemed to beg for forgiveness: "I've been waiting for you for half an hour!" "Those three people dragged on for a long time...the lawyer was late again..." Santa interrupted him sharply: "Why are you still wearing this broken soft hat? Like a gangster! Others will know it at a glance What kind of fellows are you!"

"Excuse me, Santa." Bastian hurriedly took off his bonnet and hid it, and then he reported what he had heard from the waiter at the Bristol Hotel.When he mentioned the number of 200 million, there was an uproar in the room.A few whistled, and one punched the table with excitement.All the people broke out, and everyone talked non-stop.Suddenly a shrill voice overwhelmed the noise of the others: "Shut up!" The room suddenly became silent. "Ask who will talk again, understand?" Santa turned and leaned on the back of the chair and said, "Bring the cigarettes." The two thieves quickly handed her the cigarettes and lit them for her. "Everyone listen to me carefully, and now I will tell you what to do." It was Thursday, December 5, 1940.The weather in Marseille is already quite cold.In the grocery store in Via Roma there are two customers who want to buy something.One said, "I'd like to buy four pastry tins." "What about you?" the saleswoman asked the other. "I'd like to buy three molds. If I can." The first was a muscular burly man with shaved red hair, and his name was Bastien Fabre.The other dresses handsomely and speaks politely.He called himself Pierre Hunnebert.After buying good things, they walked towards the old district.Thomas figured now I'm going to do fake gold bars with the big guy, what a deal!I really want to see how the experts make this stuff! Dr. Reine Buller's dental practice hours were nine to twelve in the morning, three to six in the afternoon, and they walked over and rang the doorbell.The door opened. "I'm waiting for you," said Dr. Rene Buller.Thomas had never seen such a small and dainty man in his life.He wore a white coat, gold-rimmed pince-nez, and gold-shining false teeth. "Come in, boys." The doctor said while changing a sign on the door, which said that the clinic is closed today!He turned back and closed the door, walked through a treatment room with a swivel chair and some shiny instruments, and went straight on into a laboratory adjoining the kitchenette.In that laboratory, Bastian gave them a brief introduction to each other.He said to Thomas: "This doctor has been doing things for us all the time, and has a separate contract with our boss." "That's right. But it's just this item of counterfeiting gold. If you brothers have teeth problems, you'd better hire someone else." The short doctor looked at Thomas and said, "It's strange, how could we I don't know you. Are you a newcomer?" Thomas nodded. "Just came out of the cell." Bastian added this sentence happily: "I am very favored by the boss." "All right. Have you brought the mold? Have you brought it? That's great. Then I'll make seven gold bars together, so I don't have to wait for the mold to cool down to make the second one." Dr. Buller took out the pastry mold. Come out and put them away one by one. "It's the right length." He said, "You're going to make a big sliver in kilograms, right? Yeah, I think so too." He said to Thomas, "If you're interested, you can watch me Do it, lad. No one else would have guessed that these things could be used in such a way." "You're quite right." Thomas said, standing up, silently looking at the sky as if asking for forgiveness. On the afternoon of December 6, 1940, Hunebel and Fabre went to the Bristol Hotel to find the fat, red-faced lawyer Jacques Bergi, who received them in his suite.He was wearing a blue silk dressing gown, with a piece of sand silk stuffed in the breast pocket, which exuded the scent of perfume.At first he was very upset, because he saw a stranger follow Thomas into his room: "What does this mean, Monsieur Hunnebert? I don't know this gentleman at all! I just want to talk to you alone! " "This gentleman is a friend of mine. I'm carrying rather valuable goods, Mr. Belgi. There must be a bodyguard!" the lawyer relented.He said, "It's a pity my friend Lysepton isn't here." That would be better, Thomas thought."Where is he?" he asked. "Go to Bandol." Belgi said, pursing his little pink mouth, as if about to whistle: "He will go there to buy a lot of goods, you know gold and foreign exchange Buy both." "I know." Thomas said and gave Bastian a wink.So he put a small box on the table and opened the lock with a click, and there were seven gold bars inside.Belgi began to examine the gold bars carefully.He looked at the seal: "Well, well, Lyon Smelter, very good." At this moment, Thomas gave Bastian a wink, and Bastian said, "May I wash my hands?" "The bathroom is over there." Bastian walked into the bathroom.He turned on a faucet to let the water splash, then tiptoed into the hallway and pulled the room key out of the lock... Belgi is examining the gold bars.He examined the bullion exactly as the little dentist had said, with a whetstone and various concentrations of hydrochloric acid. "All right," he said, "then what shall I do with you?" "What did you say?" Thomas breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Bastian come back. "Every time I buy gold, I have to keep a record for my client. We have to write a roster of customers..." Roster!Thomas was thrilled to hear this.This is exactly the list he was looking for!It is the list of traitors and moles who passed the Gestapo in the unoccupied regions of France.Belji said calmly: "Of course, we will never force anyone to tell us his name and address..." He smiled and continued: "But if you still want to do business with us in the future, I'm afraid you still have to give us your name." It’s better for us to leave an address or something... Of course it’s absolutely confidential..." Thomas said: "Okay, I hope to provide you with some goods in the future. There are also foreign exchange." "I'm sorry, please wait a moment." Belgi twisted and walked into his bedroom like a woman. "Is it printed?" Thomas asked Bastian quietly. "Of course." Bastian nodded: "Uh, this short fat man..." "You can see it already." At this moment, Belgi came out from the back room and picked up a folder with four locks.Thomas Levin told him his false name and address, and Belgie wrote down what Thomas said. "Give me the money, then," Thomas said.Belgi smiled and said: "Don't be afraid, I will give it to you. Please come with me to the bedroom..." There were three large chests in the next bedroom, and the lawyer opened a narrow drawer.Thomas saw that it was full of bundles of one thousand to five thousand franc notes.Thomas understood that Belgie and Lysepton needed to bring some quick cash.There is no doubt that the other drawers of the three large chests must also be full of money.Bergi paid three hundred and sixty thousand francs, or about eighteen thousand Reichsmarks, for each bar.The seven gold bars amounted to two and a half million francs.Belgi waited for Thomas to count the money and asked Thomas with a smile, "My friend, when will we meet again?" Thomas asked in surprise, "Why don't you go back to Paris?" "No, Lasepton will go back alone. He will pass here by the express at three o'clock to-morrow afternoon." "go through?" "Yes, he is going from Bandol to Paris with his goods. I will give him your gold. Then we can go to dinner together. What do you think?" Fifteen thirty, St. Charles station.An hour later, Thomas reported what he had learned in a large old house on Rope Factory Street.The owner of the house was Jacques Cousteau, Major of the Naval Artillery, an important figure in the reorganized French intelligence service.Cousteau sat down in an armchair in front of a colorful bookshelf, an old pipe with only a few leaves in his mouth.Colonel Simon sat beside him.Poor thing, the elbows of his black coat and the knees of his trousers are worn to a shine.As soon as he crossed his legs, a hole appeared in the sole of his left shoe.This French intelligence service is really ridiculous and pathetic.Thomas thought that I, an outsider who was forced to do espionage activities, had more money than the entire Second Office at the moment!Now he was standing there in an unrestrained and unrestrained manner, with that small box beside him.It contained seven gold bars when he went to Monsieur Belgi.What now?It contained 2.52 million francs. Thomas Levin said: "Watch out for that express when it arrives at the station. I've checked that it only stops here for eight minutes." "We will pay attention." Cousteau said: "Don't worry, Mr. Hunnebel." Simon stroked his beard and asked Thomas eagerly: "Do you think that Lesepton has a lot of goods with him?" "Bergi said that he had a huge amount of gold and foreign exchange, and other things. He ran for several days in the south, shopping everywhere. So there must be a lot of goods on him, otherwise he would not return to Paris. Bergi also wants Give him my seven gold bars. I think you'd better take this opportunity to kill two birds with one stone..." "Everything is ready. We have called our friends at the police station," Cousteau said.Simon asked Thomas, "But how do you get the roster?" Thomas smiled and replied, "Stop racking your brains, Simon. Don't worry about it. You can help, though. I need three Brees A uniformed waiter at Thor's Hotel." "It can be done. The clothes and bed sheets of the Bristol Hotel are all washed by Solomon Laundry and Dyeing. Uniforms are also washed there. The deputy manager of this laundry and dyeing shop is one of us." Cousteau said. "Fine," Thomas said. He looked at the bony Colonel Simon's perforated shoe, at his battered overcoat, and at Cousteau's old pipe, which had not much tobacco in it.Then he looked again at his suitcase.So our friend Thomas did a touching thing.This incident shows that although the cruel fate pushed him into the cruel world, he still hasn't learned his lesson and still won't live according to the cruel gambling rules of this cruel world... When Thomas Levine came out of the house on Rope Factory Street half an hour later, he saw a dark figure following him by the wall, and Thomas stopped suddenly when he turned the corner.The man following him turned the corner sharply and bumped into Thomas. "Oh, I'm sorry." He politely took off his battered and dirty hat and apologized to Thomas.Thomas recognized him at a glance as one of Santa's men.He murmured a few words and then hurried away.Back on Rose Knight Street, the wild cat-like brunette hugged Thomas and kissed passionately.In order to please him, she dressed up and dressed up.Candles were lit, and ice cubes had already been placed in the champagne: "I finally hoped for you, my dear! Makes me want to..." "I'm going to..." "To your colonel. I know, Basty told me safely." "Where's Bastian?" "His mother is ill. He has to go and see and be back tomorrow." "Tomorrow, haha," Thomas said, opening the small suitcase.The box is still full.But not as full as when Belgie filled him with money.Santa saw it and squealed with joy. "Don't get too excited, my dear," Thomas said. "Half a million less?" "what?" "Yes, I gave Cousteau and Simon the half a million cents. Poor people, too. Damn, I pity them, you know. . . Just let it be my part. The remaining 2.02 million francs belong to you and your people." Santa kissed the tip of his nose and said casually: "You are so generous, you are so cute... this time You got nothing." "But I got you," said Thomas amiably.Then he asked straight to the point: "Santa, why did you send someone to watch me?" "What? Surveillance? Me? You?" Her eyes widened: "Honey, what are you thinking?" "One of your guys bumped into me." "Oh, it must have been by chance. By chance..." "My God, why are you so suspicious? How can I convince you that I love you?" "Tell the truth for once, you bitch. But I know it's a never-satisfied luxury." The express train bound for Paris arrived at Saint-Charles train station on time at 3:30 pm on December 7, 1940. A man about thirty-seven years old was sticking his head out of the window and looking at the platform. .After a while, he saw Belgi, a fat lawyer in conspicuous clothes.Paul de Lessepton waves from the car.Jacques Bergi waves from the platform.The train stopped.Belgi picked up the small suitcase and hurried to his friend's compartment.But before the car stopped, thirty plainclothes policemen rushed out of the crowd.They flocked to the car from both sides of the train and pulled two long ropes on either side of the track.No one is allowed to open the door without their permission.A police officer walked up to Belgi and told him he was under arrest.A pale-faced Belgi asked why he was being arrested.The police officer said to him: "Because you are suspected of smuggling gold and foreign exchange." Belgi remained silent, and he still held the small box containing seven gold bars in his hand.At the same time, two other plainclothes policemen rushed up from both ends of the carriage to arrest Paul de Lessepton. Just as the police were arresting the two French Gestapo lackeys, three waiters in green uniforms came to the corridor on the fifth floor of the Bristol Hotel.Two of them looked like some of Santa Tessier's men, and the other was Thomas Levin, disguised as a waiter, and their green uniforms did not seem to fit them very well.Thomas opened Belgie's apartment without difficulty.With a level of agility that is difficult for ordinary hotel hostesses, the three of them moved out the three large cabinets in the house and dragged them to the elevator room.They took the elevator down to the ground floor.Move the cabinets to the yard.There was a Solomon's Laundry and Dyeing truck parked there.They loaded the cabinet onto the truck and drove away without any hindrance. An hour later, Thomas Levin, who had replaced the original, walked happily to Jacques Cousteau's house on the Rue de la Rope des Works, where Cousteau and Simon were already waiting for him.Thomas got Belgie's folder, from which he took out a roster of names and addresses of spies, moles, and soul-sellers.He waved it triumphantly in the air.It took him a long time to realize that Cousteau and Simon looked wrong, and they had no idea of ​​happiness at all.Thomas asked in surprise: "What's the matter? Did these two guys catch it?" Cousteau nodded. "What about the seven gold bars?" "I got it too." "Then why?" "We have nothing else to say, Monsieur Hunébert," said Cousteau slowly.He stared intently at Thomas.Colonel Simon also looked at Thomas with a rare look. "What do you mean having nothing else? Lasepton must have gold, foreign exchange, and valuables with him!" "Yeah, you want us to believe that, right?" Cousteau bit his lower lip after he finished speaking. "He didn't bring anything with him?" "Not a gram of gold, Monsieur Hunébert. Not a single dollar, not a single thing of value. Do you wonder?" "But, but he's hiding it, I'm afraid! In a carriage, or somewhere on the train. He's probably in collusion with the railroad. You must search the train! Search all the passengers!" "We did all of that. We even had the tender truck turned over with a shovel, but nothing was found." "Where's the train?" "Go away, we can't always stop the car and refuse to let it go!" At this time, Simon and Cousteau noticed that Thomas smiled, and he kept shaking his head and moving his lips silently.Yeah, how did they see what Thomas was doing inside?Thomas cursed in his heart: "This bitch!" Simon didn't understand why Thomas was laughing.He stood up suddenly, puffed out his chest, and asked half-sarcastically, half-threateningly: "Well, Levin. I'm afraid you can guess where the gold will be?" "Yes." Thomas said slowly, "I think I can guess." On the evening of December 7, 1940, the bitter cold wind was blowing.Filled with anger, his jaw clenched and his shoulders shrugged, he strode into the corner of Paradise in Marseilles against the cold wind.Santa the bitch!Bastille the bastard!The wind is blowing more and more fiercely, howling in the streets of Marseille like howling ghosts and wolves.Thomas' mood at this time was the same as this annoying climate, angry, disappointed, gloomy, and desolate! Next door to the old Exchange on Paradise Street was a dirty, shabby building, and on the second floor of that building was a little hotel called Papa's.No one knows the name of the boss, but the whole town calls him Olive.Olive's face was very red and his body was as fat as a pig.The papa hotel was filled with thick and choking smoke.The lights in the room flickered on and off.It was still early in the day, and Olive's guests were talking business over an aperitif.They were all thinking about what kind of black market deal they would make after the meal tonight.The olives were leaning against the wet counter when Thomas came in.With a cigarette in his mouth.When he saw Thomas coming in, his small eyes flickered and he asked Thomas with a smile, "What would you like to drink? How about a glass of ouzo?" Thomas had already heard about Olive's own ouzo.He was told that olive wine was made from alcohol stolen from an autopsy lab.The most outrageous thing was that it was the alcohol in which the corpse had been soaked in the dissection room.It is said that some people who drank the olive ouzo immediately lost their minds.So Thomas said, "Give me a double cognac. But be real!" He took the drink and said, "Listen to Olive, I'm looking for Bastian." "Bastian, I don't know." "You must know him. He lives behind your hotel. I know the only way to get to him is through this counter, and I also know that he only meets outsiders through you." Olive puffed up his groundhog-like cheeks, Suddenly a sly light flashed in his eyes; "You're probably a little ass bug from the police station, huh! Get out of here, baby. I've got people on hand, as long as I whistle, they'll come and beat your nose up of." "I'm not from there." Thomas took a sip of his drink, then he pulled out his gold pocket watch to check the time.Olive looked at him in amazement and said, "Since he doesn't come from there, how do you know he lives here?" "He told me himself. Go and tell him that his good friend Pierre is coming to see him. If he doesn't come out right away, something will happen here in five minutes..." After a while, Bastian came out, and he walked towards Thomas with his arms outstretched.Now they were standing in the narrow corridor leading from the hotel to Bastian's house.Bastian put his big hands like bear paws on Thomas' shoulders and said, "That's great, baby! I was going to find you!" "Pull your paw back at once, you liar," Thomas said savagely.He pushed Bastian away and walked straight into his room.Bastian's front room is a mess.There were car tires, gasoline cans, and cigarette cartons strewn about.In a room further inside, there is a large table on which electric toy trains are installed, and stations, bridges, tunnels, mountains, canyons, and winding rails are arranged.Thomas asked slightly mockingly: "Do you have a kindergarten at home?" "This is my hobby." Bastian felt a little aggrieved: "Please don't lean on that box, it will damage the transformer... Uh, tell me, brother, what's going on? Why is it so big? angry?" "Do you still need to ask me? Yesterday you were missing. Today, Santa is missing again. Two hours ago, the police arrested the two Gestapo buyers Belgi and Leisupton. Leisupton came from Bandol was carrying gold, jewelry, and foreign exchange with him when he got on the train. But when the train arrived in Marseilles, there was nothing around him. The police searched the entire train, but they still found nothing.” "Hey, look, look, there is such a thing!" He said with a sneer and went to press the button of a toy train.One of the trains then started and drove slowly towards a tunnel.Thomas reached out and unplugged the wires from the wall.The train stopped at once.The two carriages were still in the tunnel and had not been dragged out in time.Now Bastian got angry, he stood up suddenly and shouted: "You really want to be beaten, don't you? What do you want to do today?" "I want to know where Santa is! I want to know where the gold is!" "Where is it? Of course it's next door. In my bedroom, there's no shortage of one." "Where is it?" Thomas was so nervous that he found it difficult to swallow. "Where did you go? You think she's off with that thing? She's just trying to make things right, and make the house nice, and light candles and all, to please you boy. "Bastian raised his voice and called out: "Okay, Santa." A door opened and Santa stood there, more radiant than ever.She wore a pair of green shorts today, all made of leather.He wore a white shirt and a black belt.There was an excited smile on her face, showing a mouthful of tiny teeth. "Here you go, honey." She came over and took Thomas by the hand and said, "Come with me, now you can get your gift!" Thomas quickly followed her into the next room.Here are five candles lit.Santa had already made candlesticks for the candles.Soft candlelight illuminates a heavy double bed in this quaint room.Thomas took a good look around the room.His eyes are blurred.The bed was heaped with glittering treasures, twenty or thirty bars of gold, countless gold coins, rings, necklaces, bracelets, both fashionable and ancient.An old gold crucifix, a golden Greek Orthodox icon, and large packets of dollar and pound notes.Thomas felt his legs go limp, and he sank down on an antique rocking chair.Shaking wobbly.Bastian walked up to Thomas, touched his head with his arm, rubbed his hands happily and said, "Look at this kid, he's become tofu!" "Everyone is happy today, everyone is very happy." Santa said softly.Thomas vaguely saw two faces moving, like two floating white balls bobbing with the waves.He put his foot out on the ground.The chair no longer wobbled.Now he could see Santa's and Bastian's faces clearly.那是两张洋溢着幸福的孩提的脸，没有虚伪没有欺骗没有诡诈没有恶毒没有猜疑。他唉声叹气地说道：“结果还是我猜中了。果然是你们把东西偷了。” 巴斯蒂安马嘶一样笑起来，他往肚皮上拍了一巴掌说道：“既是为了你，也是为了我们！这下子这个冬天可以对付过去了嘛！嗨呀，这些东西咱们就先凑合着用吧！”桑塔两三步就跑到托马斯跟前抱住他的雨点般地吻了一番。“啊！”她叫道：“你这会儿多迷人呐！太迷人了！呵，我快要疯了！”她说着一下子坐到他膝盖上，椅子又摇了起来，托马斯又觉得一阵昏眩。他昏昏沉沉地听到仿佛是透过一片棉花海洋传来的桑塔的声音：“我给那些小伙子们说好了。这件事得由我们单独干，我的宝贝不能参加。他太正派了，太讲道义了。我们不要去为难他，等到我们把那些赃物拿到手，他还是会同我们一道快活的！”托马斯摇了摇头有气无力地说：“你们是怎么找到那些赃物的。嗯，找到那些东西的呢？”巴斯蒂安讲起来：“嗨，昨天我不是同你一起到贝尔吉住的地方去了吗？他不是说他那个伙伴莱塞普顿在班多尔要买好多金银财宝吗？所以我就找了三个兄弟连夜赶到了班多尔！我在那儿有的是朋友。明白了吗？我摸清了莱塞普顿串通了几个列车上的人员，害怕检查想把那些赃物藏在煤水车厢的煤下面。懂了吗？”巴斯蒂安讲的时候好几次都想笑。好不容易才忍住了又继续往下讲：“我们是放长线钓大鱼。让他藏去。然后呢我们就给他安插了一个小羊羔那么温顺的小妞去陪他过夜。幸好这个红脸公鸡比那个贝尔吉馋嘴。喏，这个小妞按照我们的吩咐逗得他心痒难按。这只公鸡最后给灌得烂醉如泥，直到第二天早晨还没清醒，是耷拉着腿上火车的！” “哈哈！”桑塔快活地叫了一声，用她涂了红指甲的手去抚摸托马斯的头发。“莱塞普顿未必没托人照看他那节煤水车厢？” “托了人的，是两个铁路上的。”巴斯蒂安把双手举起来又放下去：“他送他们每人一个金条。于是我们就给他们每人再送两个。金条我们有的是嘛，于是这事就好办啦……” “黄金的威力，你看。”桑塔说着轻轻地在托马斯的耳朵上咬了一下。 “桑塔！” “怎么，宝贝儿？” “站起来。”托马斯说，她惶恐地从托马斯身上站起来。巴斯蒂安伸手抱住了她的肩头。他们俩就这么一动不动地站在那儿，刚才还是欢天喜地，现在却战战兢兢的了。大家都象泥塑木雕似的呆着，只有那些金条、金币、金项链、金戒指和翡翠宝石在闪动着耀眼的光芒。托马斯也站起身来。他无限伤感地叹息道：“天呐，我一想到我现在要搅扰你们快乐的情绪，一想到我不得不向你们泼冷水就感到痛心！可是，这的确不行啊！” “什么的确不行？”巴斯蒂安惶惶不安地问道。“我们不能要这些东西。我们得把这些东西交给库斯托和西蒙。” “疯了，疯了！”巴斯蒂安嘴张开之后合不拢了。他求助似的望着桑塔说：“他真的是疯了！”桑塔仍然站在原地一动也不动。只见她的左鼻翼在微微地颤动……托马斯平心静气地说道：“我从西蒙和库斯托那儿来，我同他们两人说定了的。那些内奸叛徒的花名册交给他们，贝尔吉和莱塞普顿通过各种偷、骗、抢掠、敲诈而收集起来的一切赃物也归他们所有。我们在贝尔吉寝室里搬出来的三个大柜的钱归我们所有。这总还是有六千八百万呐！” “是六千八百万法郎！”巴斯蒂安急得叫了起来，他不停地绞手指：“是法郎！法郎！而现在纸币法郎一天比一天下值钱！” “为了得到这么点钱你就要这些东西都交出去？”桑塔指了指床，用细嫩得像耳语般的声音说道：“这些至少也要一亿五千万法郎，你这个傻瓜！”托马斯怒气冲冲地说道：“可这应该是法国的财产。这是偷法国的！三个柜子里的钱是盖世太保的钱，这些钱我们可以心安理得地留着慢慢花。可是这些首饰、圣像、国库里偷来的黄金……天呐，难道还得让我这个德国佬来唤起你们爱国心么？”巴斯蒂安嘶声哑气地说道：“这是我们偷到的。我们把这东西偷了。盖世太保就只有望着月亮干瞪眼儿。我觉得我们这不就是给我们的祖国做了大好事吗？”巴斯蒂安和托马斯就这样你一言我一语地争个没完。越争越生气，越争越激动。而桑塔反而越来越平静了。她双手叉腰，大拇指扣着皮带，右脚摆来摆去。左边的鼻翼不停地颤动。最后她低声打断巴斯蒂安的话：“别这么激动。这儿是你的屋。这个小白痴得先滚出去！然后叫库斯托和西蒙滚进来。”托马斯耸了耸肩头，扭头就想往外走。谁知巴斯蒂安一个箭步就横到他的前面。他掏出手枪：“你要到那儿去？” “去爸爸酒店打电话。” “再走一步我就打死你。”巴斯蒂安喘息着咔嚓一声掰开了枪机保险。托马斯又朝前走了两步，胸口顶住枪口。巴斯蒂安重重地长叹了一声往后退了两步：“娃娃！头脑别发热……我，我可真的要开枪了……” “让我走，巴斯蒂安。”托马斯又往前挤了一步。巴斯蒂安的背已经靠着门了。托马斯伸手去拉门把手。巴斯蒂安带着哭音喊道：“等一下嘛！你知道那些狗杂种把这些赃物拿去之后会派些什么用场吗？搞黑市交易、拿去变卖、挥霍，警察国家保密局祖国什么东西！全是他妈的贼！”托马斯把门把手按下去，拉开了门。面如土色的巴斯蒂安望着桑塔喊叫着：“桑塔，你说话呀！帮帮我呀！我，我下不了手……”。托马斯听到哔啦一声响，他扭回头。原来桑塔一下子坐到床沿上，挥起她那对小拳头噼里啪啦地朝那些金条、圣像、金币上乱捶。她一边捶一边尖叫：“让他走，让这个白痴走吧……”眼泪像泉水一样涌出来顺着她美丽的脸颊往下淌。她伤心绝望地嚎啕大哭起来：“你走吧……去叫西蒙……他可以把东西全拿走……啊，你这个无赖，为什么我遇见了你呀……本来我是多快活啊……” “桑塔！” “……本来我打算从此洗手不干了，同你一道远走高飞到瑞士去。我全都是为了你……可现在……” “桑塔，亲爱的。” “别叫我亲爱的，你这个混账东西！”她狂怒地叫喊着。随后她无力地朝前面倒下去。她的额头撞在堆积如山的金币上。她就那样趴在床上哭呀哭呀以至哭得死去活来。 “把衣服脱掉。”与此同时，法院的看守长年轻漂亮的路易斯·杜篷对两个刚刚押到马赛警察局监狱接收室的犯人下了第一道命令。“要我们干啥？”莱塞普顿气势汹汹地问道。他那双冰冷鲨鱼眼眯成了一条缝，嘴唇变成了惨白的两道线纹。“你们得把衣服脱掉。”杜篷说：“我要看看你们衣服里有什么东西。”贝尔吉吃吃地笑了笑说：“年轻的朋友，您以为我们身上有什么东西呢？”他朝前走了一步，解开了他的背心纽扣。“别脱了。”保尔·德·莱塞普顿恶狠狠地说道。“怎么？”杜篷回过身问他。“我受够了。去把你们监狱的头头叫来，叫他马上到这儿来。” “呃，你用这种口气……”保尔·德·莱塞普顿的声音轻得几乎听不见了。他耳语般地说道：“住嘴，您能识字吧？看！”他掏出一张证书给这个年轻的官员看。这是一份用德法两国文字签发的证书，证明保尔·德·莱塞普顿是受德国保安总署的委托办事的。“呵，趁此机会嘛。”贝尔吉说着也扭动屁股从后面裤包里摸出一个散发着香水味的皮夹子，他从夹子里也掏出一份同样的证书。“我去请示我的上司。”路易斯·杜篷结巴起来。他看过证书，对这两个家伙更反感了。 “莱塞普顿？贝尔吉？”坐在写字台后面的旗队长瓦尔特·艾歇尔气得朝椅背上一靠，对着电话筒吼叫起来：“是的，不错，我认识这两个人！是的，不错。他们是为我们工作！我们派人来接他们。”电话线另一端的那位法国官员很客气地对他提供的情况表示感谢。“不用谢，希特勒万岁！”艾歇尔咔嚓一声把话筒摔在支架上：“温特尔！”他的副官赶紧从隔壁房间跑进来，这些先生们在巴黎市郊佛赫林荫道一幢豪华别墅的五楼从事着阴森恐怖的工作。温特尔瓮声瓮气地问道：“有事吗，旗队长？” “莱塞普顿和那个老大婶贝尔吉在马赛被扣起来了。”艾歇尔怒气冲冲地说道。“唉呀，怎么搞的？” “我也不知道，简直糟糕透了。我们这边的人都是些白痴么？您想想，要是让卡纳里斯知道了怎么得了！那他就大有文章可做了！就会说保安处把法国非占领区的东西都买空啦！” 二十四小时后，老水手咖啡馆在桑塔·泰西尔主持下开了一个说得好听点儿就是吵吵嚷嚷的帮会。那些坐在前堂谈生意的法国走私商和西班牙伪造护照的骗子，科西嘉来的妓女，摩洛哥来的阴谋家和杀人犯，听见后屋吵闹声越来越大，都愤愤地斜着眼不时地朝那后房门上望。末了门终于开了，巴斯蒂安·法布尔从后房走出来，朝酒柜旁边的小电话间走去。看那脸色就知道他的心情烦乱得很……巴斯蒂安拨了拨爸爸酒店电话号码，接电话的就是橄榄老板。巴斯蒂安一边擦额头上的汗水一边大口地抽他那黑市上买来的香烟。他听见橄榄来接电话就急急地说道：“我是巴斯蒂安。昨天下午找过我的那个人现在还在吗？”巴斯蒂安在这之前要求托马斯在那儿等到爸爸酒店里的会议结束。橄榄回答：“在那儿。在同我的客人玩扑克牌。老是赢。” “叫他来接电话。”巴斯蒂安深深地吸了一口烟，伸手把电话间的门推开。这个该死的家伙！他根本不配接受我们的关心。 二十四小时之前，这个家伙将保密局的人叫来把那些宝贝拿走了，幸好没有全拿走。巴斯蒂安想。当托马斯出去打电话的时候，他同桑塔很快将一些金币和其它贵重东西藏起来……不过，比起那一大堆拿的这点儿又算什么呢。“喂，巴斯蒂安！喏，老兄，情况如何？”巴斯蒂安一听这小子漫不经心的口气气得要死，他说：“皮埃尔，我是你的朋友。所以我现在要劝你赶紧溜吧。一分钟也不能等了，快溜吧。” “呃，这又是为什么呢？” “会上桑塔已经提出来她不愿当头头了。” "Oh!" “她哭了……” “呵，巴斯蒂安。你不知道我是多么为难……” “别打岔，傻瓜。她说她爱你，说她理解你……后来大多数人都软了下来……” “啊，爱情！法兰西万岁！” “……可有些人态度还是很硬。那个跛脚法国人有一伙子人跟着他屁股转。你认识他，我们管他叫马脚……”托马斯听说过他。马脚是这个盗贼集团的元老，之所以得了这么个绰号一来是因为他走路一拐一跛的，二来是因为他搞女人的手段的凶狠与野蛮。“马脚提议把你干掉……” “很有气魄。” “他说他并不是恨你，但是说你对桑塔的影响太大了。说你把她软化了……” “哟哟！” “说你会把我们毁掉。他说为了保护桑塔，就得把你干掉……皮埃尔，快溜吧！” “恰恰相反。” "what?" “好好听着，巴斯蒂安。”托马斯·列文说。他的朋友听了一会儿，先是摇头继而怀疑，最后居然表示同意了。他咕哝着说：“既然你有这个胆量，那就试试看吧。那就两个小时之后再见。不过后果自负！”他挂上了电话。 当他回到烟雾弥漫的后房时，那个人称马脚的跛脚法国人正在激烈地申述他之所以提议干掉托马斯的理由。“这正是为了我们大伙儿的利益。”他边说边把一把很锋利的折叠刀插上桌面。他见巴斯蒂安这时候从外面走进来就问他：“你到哪儿去了？” “我去同皮埃尔打了电话。”巴斯蒂安不动声色地回答道：“两个小时后他请我们大伙儿吃饭。在我房子里，他说大家可以不慌不忙地边吃边商量。”桑塔啊地叫了起来。大家嚷开了：“别嚷啦！”跛脚法国人大喝一声，屋子里一下子变得鸦雀无声了。“这个家伙有几分胆量。”马脚沉思地说。然后他又恶狠狠地冷笑起来：“那好吧，伙计们。那我们就去吃吧……” “先生们，我向大家宣布。”托马斯·列文说，说着他走上前去吻了吻脸色苍白的桑塔的手。巴斯蒂安的屋子里你挨我，我挨你地挤了十五个盗贼。有的在嘿嘿地笑闹，有的却一言不发、阴沉沉地看着托马斯。房子里放了一张摆上碗盏杯盘的大桌子。托马斯靠了橄榄的帮忙把巴斯蒂安的玩具桌改装为餐桌。“好啦。”托马斯搓着手说道：“请诸位入席好吗？桑塔坐首位，而我呢，我得坐桌子的另一端。至于原因嘛呆会儿你们就清楚了。先生们，请不要客气。暂时把杀人的念头放在一边吧。”于是男人们便迟疑地到桌边坐了下来。桑塔的座位前面还放了一个花瓶，插着花房里买来的红玫瑰。托马斯考虑得真周到啊…… 橄榄和他的两个招待上了第一道菜，乳酪汤，这是托马斯在爸爸酒店的厨房里做的。杯盘碗盏也是从这个酒店借来的。“但愿诸位吃得开心！”托马斯坐在桌子的另一端说。在他的座位旁边放着一些东西，谁也看不出到底是什么，上面全盖上了餐巾。桌子上那条铁轨最后一直通到这堆餐巾的底下。大家默默地吃着汤菜。他们毕竟还是法国人，还会尝好汤好菜的滋味儿。桑塔的眼光一刻也没有离开过托马斯。她的一双眼睛真是她心灵的窗户，感情的每一丝涟漪都会从眼光中反射出来。马脚埋头默默地吃着，他脸上的怒气并未消散。吃过清炖兔肉，橄榄和两个招待又拖过来一个专门的小桌。桌上放的菜肴看起来好象是一个超级大土司。现在托马斯拿起一把刀，一边磨刀一边说：“先生们！现在我要给你们展示一个可以说是我本人发明的新东西。我很清楚诸位各有各的气质。你们当中有的人比较宽宏大量，愿意饶恕我，另外有些人脾气暴烈一些，想送我回老家。这真是各有所好嘛。正因为各有所好，所以我就为大家做了一种菜，保大家都能各得其所。”他用手朝那小桌上的大土司一指说：“看吧，举世无双的脆皮大肉饼！”他首先问桑塔：“亲爱的，你喜欢吃牛肉泥还是猪肉呢？要么就是小牛肉泥你看怎么样？” “小……小……小牛肉泥。”她使劲地清了清喉咙，费力地说道。现在托马斯揭开了餐巾，亮出了下面盖着的东西。原来下面放着巴斯蒂安的电动玩具火车，车头连着煤水车厢，煤水车后面还拖着一节很大的货车厢，此外还有一个操纵电动火车的旋钮开关。托马斯把装上了小牛肉泥的盘子放到货车厢上，打开电机开关。火车头嗡嗡地跑起来了，托磁卡煤水车厢和载着盘子的货车车厢绕过了十五个脖子伸得长长的盗贼，在桌子上行驶了一大转儿，最后停在桑塔的面前。她把盘子从车厢上拿下来。这时有几个男人简直看呆了，他们嘿嘿地笑起来，还有一个拍了手掌。托马斯按动开关，火车头又牵引着空车厢驶回他的身旁。托马斯沉着地说道：“请问坐在桑塔左手的那位先生想要什么？”一个一只眼睛上戴了遮眼罩的伙计嘴都笑歪了，他高声叫道：“猪肉的！” “好咧，猪肉的。”托马斯把那个大肉饼转了转，从另外三分之一的部分切下一块放在车厢上，又用同样的方法送到那人的手边。到这会儿大家都来劲儿了。都觉得这个点子想得很好玩。他们你一言我一语地越谈越活跃，又听见一个人叫了一声：“我要牛肉！” “好咧。”托马斯又切了一块牛肉的给他送到手边。有几个人鼓起掌来。托马斯看了看桑塔，向她眨了眨眼，又眯上一只眼睛。弄得桑塔含着眼泪的眼睛也露出了笑意。大家越吃越起劲，那个小火车在桌子上来回不停地奔驰。最后只有马脚面前还是空盘子了。托马斯转向他问道：“你呢，先生？”托马斯一边问一边又拿起刀来。马脚沉思着把托马斯看了好久才慢腾腾地站起身来，并把手伸到衣袋里去。桑塔惊叫了一声，巴斯蒂安一眼便看见马脚从衣袋里摸出一把寒光闪闪的短刀。他便悄悄地伸手去掏枪。只听叮当一声响，马脚手中的弹簧刀跳出了鞘。他默默地朝托马斯面前拐了一步，又拐一步。他已经走到托马斯跟前了。屋子里一下子变得死一般寂静。马脚站在托马斯的面前目不转睛地同托马斯对视了好几秒钟，托马斯仍然神态安详地望着他，一动也不动。随后马脚突然嘿嘿地笑了，他说：“把我的刀拿去切吧，这比您那把锋利些。把猪肉泥给我，您这个狗杂种！”